ABSTRACT

The role of business is as an integral part of society and the economy. Its freedom to operate correlates directly with the responsibility of its performance. Business operates under the umbrella of a licence provided by society. Over the last two decades many businesses and corporations have put this licence at risk, by losing sight of their role in society in a rush to deliver returns to investors. Rebuilding responsibility is required to rebuild trust and persuade government that business should be freed from regulations and interference. Strategy in the age of responsibility is considerably different to the narrow focus on bottom-line results that has come to dominate the strategic process. Corporations should retain their commercial focus but directed towards the challenges of this era. This is what society needs: a vibrant business sector empowered to establish sustainable and profitable enterprises free of government control and fit for the twenty-first century.